8th Bomber Division (People's Republic of China)
Military unit / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 8th Bomber Division or 8th Air Division (Chinese: 空军航空兵第八师; pinyin: Kōngjūn Hángkōngbīng Dì Bā Shī, 8th AD) of the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) is an air formation of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Today, the 8th Bomber Division is assigned to the Southern Theater Command and operates Xian H-6 bombers.[1] The 8th Bomber Division, the first and longest-serving bomber unit in the PRC, has been deployed in the 1950–1953 Korean War, 1958 Second Taiwan Strait Crisis, 1959 Tibetan uprising, and today conducts deterrence patrols in the South China Sea.
8th Bomber Division | |
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空军航空兵第八师 | |
Active | 27 November 1950 – Present |
Country | People's Republic of China |
Allegiance | Chinese Communist Party |
Branch | People's Liberation Army Air Force |
Role | Bomber |
Part of | Southern Theater Command Air Force |
Garrison/HQ | Leiyang, Hunan |
Nickname(s) | 8th Bomber Division, Unit 95291 |
Aircraft flown | |
Bomber | H-6K |
Tanker | H-6U |
As one of only three bomber divisions of the PLAAF, and the only bomber division assigned to the Southern Theater Command Air Force, the 8th Bomber Division is almost certainly responsible for providing strategic bombing support capabilities with Su-30 or Su-35 fighter escorts to a conflict in the South China Sea and potentially a conflict with Taiwan.[1][2][3]